12.29.08
4.24 pm

My Mickey!

            Today was a beautiful day. Not traditionally beautiful, though. Not what most or all other people would call beautiful. Most or all may agree that today was an ugly day, a hideously rainy day, a bipolar day- a terrible, no good, very bad day. I can only agree on the day being super bipolar. The weather, that is. Today was amazing.

            Today we went to Tortola. It was beautiful, rainy and dark for the most part. I spent the whole time taking pictures. I took 128 pictures at Tortola alone. Mickey, it was SO green! It was screaming of nature at its best. The few houses that were scattered about the edge of the islands were broken down, oddly painted, poorly built, and they were beautiful! They fit so nicely with the natural beauty of the island.

            While everyone paid attention to the driver announcing interesting points and good photo opportunities, I had my headphones on, listening to Jason Mraz (of course), and snapping whatever pictures I wanted. Most of the time I was facing the opposite direction generally everyone else was facing. I’d repeat (in order) ‘Plane’, ‘You and I Both’, ‘The Remedy (I Won’t Worry)’, ‘I’m Yours’, and ‘Lucky’ by Jason Mraz.

            I seemed to notice every fold of every leaf, every drop of water dripping, every brushing of the leaves, every tine insect wedged in between, every color out of place that yet fit in so perfectly, every stray and odd mark on the rocks, every crack on the road, every shape of every cloud, every shade of blue and grey the sky turned, every different kind of plant...It was amazing. It was as if I was talking to God, praising His Son on every significant (to me) detail he placed in the natural greenery of our earth. And I was. I was so amazed at the love He showed us and shows us every day. Any other man may create a world with the basics a human would need to survive, not worrying about details and pretty things. Not Jesus, though. He made sure He created everything personally. He oversaw everything in the creating process. He MADE EVERYTHING NATURAL we see. He placed every stray mark on the appropriate stone, every fold on every leaf, every insect in its place, every uniquely shaped cloud in the sky...personally.

            Like God makes us, Jesus made the earth. Sure, scientists may credit genetics in play of how we turn out and how plants turn out. Ultimately, though, God makes us how He wished to make us- and for a certain reason. He makes deformed and less fortunate people to teach those around them compassion and love. He makes insanely gorgeous people to teach those certain people humility, and to teach hose around them to not be covetous. He makes “ugly” people so those certain people can learn to love and only listen to the Lord and not the world’s opinions, and to teach those around them to love, not judge, and be equal. He makes average-looking people to teach them that life is not at all average, and if they live the right way, they will be anything but average-looking. He does not make crap, though. God is great, and He does not make anyone less than great. God is beautiful- the most beautiful person ever- and everything He makes is beautiful. EVERY SINGLE PERSON IN THIS WORLD IS BEAUTIFUL. Every single one. People with perfect hair and frizzy hair, clear faces and acne-hit faces, overweight bodies and skinny bodies, natural good smell and B.O., natural looks and “not-so-good” looks.

            Remember, though, who has made these judgments on the classifications of “pretty” and “ugly”. Remember who exactly has called fat, acne, frizz, and B.O. ugly. Man has. Man. Not God. Man. All of these qualities are BEAUTIFUL. Different, and different to Man, but BEATIFUL. Beautiful because God thinks so, because He says so, because beautiful is just the way He makes people. 1 Samuel 16:7 (I think, so sure, but pretty sure- It’s off the top of my head. Check your Bible) states that man does not see as God sees. 1 Samuel 16:7 tells us WHY God sees everyone as beautiful. 1 Samuel 16:7 tells us His “secret.” At least it seems like a secret, because not many people go about their lives as 1 Samuel 16:7 says God does. God does not want it to be a secret, though. It the way we should all see people. The way I have been trying to see people lately, and I’ve been doing pretty good. I could be doing about a trillion times better, though.

            No one deserved to be called ugly and fat and pimple-faced and frizzy. Everyone deserves to be called the way God would call them- Kings and queens, princes and princesses, noble and great...beautiful. Because that is what we really are.

            Next time I check myself in the mirror and think I look ugly, I need to ask myself, “What does God think I am?” Next time someone calls me pretty, I have to ask myself, “Does God think I’m pretty?” The answer to the first: He thinks I’m beautiful. The answer to the second: He thinks I’m stunning, but I have to make sure the person I am inside is worthy of being called so, too. Because in the heart is where true beauty lies. I need to be sure I’m constantly working on being a truly beautiful person.

            Whoa. I seriously have no idea how the last three pages [On paper] came to be. My plan was to tell you all about my day at Tortola and more on my trip. But I truly think God was doing the writing, or helping me write the right thing to you. I’m not sure I could have written what I just wrote all on my own, but I love it. I think the things God has taught me have done all the writing...all the things He has taught us. My trip (the tangible part of it) has nothing on the realization I’ve come to and reminders I’ve received these past six days. I’ve come back to the letter two days later. All that was written on the twenty ninth was the heading, pretty much.

            I cannot wait to come home, fax this to you, and start a crisp, brand new year with a million and one resolutions. I also cannot wait to do a million and one things with you this coming new year. Today is New Year’s Eve! :D

♥ x a million and one,
Your Meli.